Wizards Consider Dylan Harper a Lock at Second in the Draft

The Washington Wizards find themselves in a convenient position entering this upcoming NBA Draft, tied with the Utah Jazz for the best shot at getting the #1 pick in a class with two potential franchise building blocks waiting to be picked at the top.

Duke's Cooper Flagg is the presumed top prospect on nearly every front office's draft board, even with the actual selection process still sitting over a full month out. The forward is well-rounded, battle-tested, talented with room to grow and still just 18 years old. He's the piece many Wizards fans have been salivating over since the start of his National Player of the Year-winning freshman season, a two-way connector who can maximize the fleet of similarly-young role players already in Washington.

But there's no promise they'll jump the Jazz in the order and steal the #1 pick next Monday, and it's not like there aren't any non-Flagg options. Rutgers' Dylan Harper had a pretty impressive freshman season himself, thriving as an offensive hub with league-ready multilevel scoring range.

It sounds like the Wizards themselves wouldn't be too opposed to having to "settle" for Harper at #2. ESPN's Jeremy Woo reports that they're hearing plenty of Harper excitement in Washington. "There are also big fans of Harper in this front office, and the Rutgers guard would give the Wizards a lead playmaker worth building their offense around," Woo writes.

Harper's fit with the Wizards is an easy one to visualize, a lead play dictator who can pass almost as well as he can score, which he does with a lethally modern combination of shooting and slashing.

Woo reference's DC's commitment to the long-term draft process, as well as how appealing they find positional size and high-feel athletes. Harper makes for an intriguing prospect as a 6'6 point guard, having spent much of his year in college towering over his defenders and still routinely getting the step on them on his drives.